Weeks In Review - 6 June & 13 June 2014

FranClassic
Foodies Festival - Clapham

Apologies for not getting my 6 June Week In Review out to you. I usually write this blog on the Friday, but last Friday was Day 1 of Foodies Festival Clapham and I jumped right into the deep end of this 3-day event and didn't come up for air until Sunday night! The entire week was really devoted to sorting out all the last minute details for the event. We were so lucky with the weather over the 3-days and had huge crowds at the Entertainment Stage throughout each day. 

On 5 June I went to an early morning BNI networking meeting at the Hilton in Farlington where I gave a 1-minute presentation about GME. BNI is a worldwide network who are looking to launch a Portsmouth area chapter. I was invited back this week, but 6:45am is a bit too early for me, especially since I'm still recovering from Foodies :). Later on the 5th Dominic Elton (Mayfield band leader) and I met with Jeff Powell of Groovefinders to discuss Mayfield Studios, which are in the process of being built. We also discussed songwriting for our next album and development ideas as we take Mayfield to the next level as a band. 

Jerry Williams
Foodies Festival - Clapham

Jeff is a visionary manager who works with several emerging artist, including the very talented Jerry Williams who I booked to perform at Foodies Clapham. She was delightful by the way! There is mutual interest between Jeff and Mayfield to work together and I'm excited to see how things unfold in the coming months.

Even later on the 5th, I was at The Jolly Sailor judging Southsea's Got Talent! It was a very early start and long day, but no matter how tired I may feel when I get to SSGT, I am always energized and amazed by all the untapped talent in the Portsmouth area. This night was no exception. Each contestant was at the top of their game, and sadly only 3 were able to be put through to the next level! That was a hard decision to make!

Now we come to this week ...

Supremely, Diana Ross

On Monday, I had to drag my very tired self out of bed for a meeting at a venue where I'm booked to perform Supremely, Diana Ross for a birthday party. I am triple booked on this date, 21st of June,  so I need to check out the venue ahead to make sure I know how to get there and to see what equipment I will need to bring. I will be on such a tight schedule on this date, so there's very little room for errors like ... getting lost!

Wednesday I had my 1st full vocal coaching session with my new student, Nicola. I am helping her prepare set lists, find the right songs for her voice and music business coaching in addition to helping her fine tune her vocals. We had a great session and I am always thrilled when I see a student learning and growing. I recorded most of our session and played it back to Nicola. She struggled to listen to herself, but doing that helped us identify things she needs to work on, and the songs later in the session were already showing a marked improvement. I'll be seeing her again in a few weeks. 

If you are someone you know is looking for a vocal/music business coach, do get in touch to set up a free consultation.

Move On Up!

Thursday, I was with my band, Move On Up at The Wine Vaults and we had a fantastic night! We were worried that we would have a small crowd due to so many events happening at the same time including camper's night at the Isle of Wight Festival, and the opening night of the World Cup. However, we had a great crowd who were already on the dance floor by the third song of the first set ... this is very rare! By the end of the second set, the place was packed to the rafters and the punters were screaming for more ... even after our second encore! Sadly, we were out of energy and out of songs so we left the crowd wanting more, which is not a bad thing!

Speaking of Isle of Wight festival ... Mayfield are gearing up to make our debut at this great festival on the Hipshaker Stage on Saturday starting at 9pm! We had our final rehearsal prepping for the gig on Tuesday and the set is sounding very tight. We'll be dropping some new songs from our next release, and Amy and I will be donning new dresses that she designed and created! I'll have loads of pics to share with you next week.

Gloria Miller Duo

Finally, tonight I'm rehearsing with my Duo partner, Dennis Elvie as we prepare for our next gig which is the first of the three gigs I've got booked on the 21st of June. We will be doing Jazz & Blues originals and covers at The Spring in Havant! 

I've got one hour to prep for rehearsal, so that's it for now! Have a fabulous weekend!